Hello, hello!

So, this week, I had planned to get high with Maple. I rented a 32 foot extension ladder that I had delivered Monday morning. The plan was to paint all the soffit and decorative face-boards on the front and back of the house, as well as the dormer. Everything will be white and ready for the siders. The goal is to have the exterior work completed before the siding starts so everything will be done when they’re done. Did I mention I’m terrified of heights? No?

On Monday night, when Wade got home, he and I struggled to get the extension ladder stood up and extended. It’s aluminum and very heavy. After we had it up and were standing back looking at it leaned up against the house, Wade commented that he didn’t think I’d be able get the ladder stood up by myself. Did I mention I hate being told I can’t do something?

On Tuesday, I had one mission, set up the extension ladder by myself. I had to watch a training video for firefighters to figure out the technique, but I did it and even extended it by myself.

I figured I could acclimate myself to the height if I stood on the second floor balcony next to where the ladder was leaning. And nope! I’m not doing this. I took the ladder down and put it away. I spent the next couple of days painting the porch and the inside of the second floor balcony with a primer that bonds peeling paint back to the house, since I don’t have the reach to scrape everything. Although, it’s not that affordable as this stuff runs nearly $50 per gallon.

So, Bryan will be doing another job for us. We have squirrel damage to the decorative face-boards and molding on the front and back of the house. He’ll be repairing that for us and he was going to do it immediately after the soffit and face-board repairs, but that took so much longer than planned that it got postponed to next week so he could catch up on his other clients that got pushed because of my job.

While I was taking the dogs out, I noticed a squirrel in one of the holes, just watching me. The trap is being set in the attic again TODAY.

So we have been having problems with one of the refurbished washers we just bought and the owner of the appliance store came out and brought us a new one, free of charge. It works perfect and is better than the one we bought. I’m super pleased that this guy stands by his appliances and I will definitely go back to him again. Also, he knows some painters looking for work now that I need some to do the jobs high off the ground.

I did dedicate one day to cutting tree limbs away from the house in the backyard. The tree literally scrapes against the house and must be removed before the siders come. This was awful. I had to use the extension ladder to reach some of the branches and it was terrifying (and not extended).

On Friday night, we drove to Manitowoc for a fish boil with my BFF and her husband. I experienced my first fish boil in March of 2015 when I flew to visit her for a weekend right before I was stationed in Korea. And it was amazing. Fresh fish, potatoes and onions boiled in butter and served with chocolate milk? I cannot think of anything more delicious or Wisconsin. This fish boil did not disappoint and was well worth the drive. After, we went to a bar in her village for fried cheese curds.

A perfect way to end a long week.